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Bolham Primary School

Acceptable Behaviour and Discipline Policy

AIMS AND EXPECTATIONS:

At Bolham Primary School we strive to provide a caring ethos where everyone in the

school community feels safe, confident, valued and respected. By promoting an

environment where everyone can live and work together in a supportive way enables all

to reach their full potential, emotionally, socially and intellectually.

The primary aim of our Behaviour Policy is to promote good behaviour. We consider

that the best way to encourage good standards of behaviour is a clear Code of Conduct,

backed by a balanced combination of rewards and consequences, within a positive

community atmosphere. We seek to find new opportunities for praise and

encouragement and new incentives for good behaviour. See Appendix I (‘Rewards and

Sanctions’).

We believe that school rules (Code of Conduct) are important as they provide a

framework within which relationships can develop and grow in a positive way. In order

to give pupils responsibility for their behaviour, we believe that it is desirable for them

to participate in the formulation of school rules.

ROLES AND RESPONSIBLITIES IN PROMOTING POSITIVE BEHAVIOUR

The Headteacher will:-

Implement the school behaviour policy consistently throughout the school by

setting the standards of behaviour and supporting staff in the implementation

of the policy.

Keep records of all reported serious incidents of misbehaviour.

Report to Governors, when requested, on the effectiveness of the policy.

Ensure the health, safety and welfare of all children in the school.

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Report to/meet with parents/carers when necessary.

Be aware of and understand his/her rights and responsibilities. (see Appendix

II)

Implement the school Child Protection Policy and Complaints Policy in the event

of any allegation concerning misconduct against a member of staff

The Headteacher has the responsibility for giving fixed-term suspensions to individual

children for serious acts of misbehaviour. The Headteacher may permanently exclude a

child for repeated, or very serious, acts of anti-social behaviour. This action is only

taken after the school governors have been notified.

All Staff will:-

• Give opportunities to develop interpersonal and social skills

• Offer a curriculum that enables pupils to engage

• Give the opportunity to work in groups

• Make sure that pupils listen and are listened to and value others

• Help pupils to gain the ability to make choices about their behaviour

• Help pupils to be confident about their learning and enjoy it

• Help pupils understand their rights and responsibilities as citizens in our society

• Be a positive role model

• Reward/praise positive behaviour

• Record behaviour incidents on CPOMS

• Ensure the pupils in their class develop the class Code of Conduct at the start of each

new academic year and refer to them as and when necessary

• Inform parents about their child’s welfare or behaviour and, where necessary, work

alongside parents

• Be aware of and understand their rights and responsibilities (see Appendix II)

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Pupils will:

• Respect and care for others

• Listen to others

• Learn/work co-operatively

• Follow the class Code of Conduct

• Resolve disputes positively

• Value and take responsibility for the environment

• When necessary, carry out self-monitoring

• Be aware of and understand their rights and responsibilities (see Appendix II)

• Be aware of their own emotions and actions and take responsibility for these

Parents, Carers and Families will:

• Support the school when reasonable sanctions to punish a child have been used

• Promote positive behaviour at home in order to have continuity between home/school

• Initially contact the class teacher if they have concerns about the way their child has

been treated. If concerns remain, contact the Headteacher then if necessary, the

school Governors.

• Initially contact the class teacher if they feel their child’s behaviour, in or out of

school, is impacting on the child’s emotional well-being.

• Be aware of and understand their rights and responsibilities (see Appendix II).

The Governing Body will:

• Support the school in the implementation of the policy

• Give advice, when necessary, to the Headteacher about disciplinary issues so that

he/she can take the advice into account when making decisions about behaviour issues

• Review the effectiveness of the policy

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Monitoring and Evaluating

• The effectiveness of this policy will be regularly monitored by the Headteacher

• A central record of behaviour is kept on CPOMS and monitored by the headteacher

and SENCO where required.

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Appendix 1

Reward and Sanctions

At the start of this year, each teacher formulates with the children in their classroom

a Code of Conduct for behaviour in the classroom using age appropriate language. The

goal of the plan is to have a fair and consistent approach to establishing a safe, orderly,

positive classroom environment in which adults can teach and children can learn.

Children will be introduced to thinking about classroom behaviour and lunchtime

behaviour through whole school, key stage and class assemblies as well as PSHE lessons.

A Code of Conduct consists of:

An agreed set of behaviours pupils and teachers want to see in the classroom.

Positive Recognition in the form of rewards that children will receive for

following the code.

Consequences that result when pupils choose not to follow the Code of Conduct.

Positive Recognition

We aim to be positive in our approach, to notice and reward good behaviour rather than

take it for granted. Staff can use a range of strategies to promote good behaviour.

These include:

Verbal praise

Stickers

Learning Leaves

Work shown to Head/ other members of staff

Learning Leaves

Learning Leaves are awarded in recognition of a child’s outstanding learning behaviours.

A leaf with the child’s name and the learning behaviour will be awarded in our

Celebration Assembly each week before being ‘stuck’ on our Learning Tree in the main

corridor for everyone to read.

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Consequences

We believe that pupils feel more secure if they know where the boundaries of

acceptable behaviour lie and what consequences will be used if they overstep the mark.

For a consequence to be effective, it must be an action that the pupil does not want,

but should never be meant to embarrass or humiliate a pupil. It is crucial in helping to

shape acceptable behaviour that children are clear what it is was that was

unacceptable, and what they should have chosen to do instead.

Consequences are a Choice

For consequences to be effective, and a helpful tool in teaching pupils how to behave,

they are presented to pupils as a choice.

Managing behaviour at lunchtime

Mealtime Assistants are encouraged to promote positive behaviour during dinnertime

by using the following rewards;

Use of verbal praise to encourage and develop the engagement in positive

behaviours

Stickers to be worn on school jumpers

However when children choose to break the rules MTA’s will use the following

consequences;

1. Use non-verbal communication such as body language/eye contact whenever possible

(i.e. shake of the head)

2. Give an informal verbal warning that reminds the child that they are choosing to

break the rule (say which one) and that if they persist they will get an amber

warning card.

3. The child is given an amber warning. This means that the child has 5 minutes time

out in the playground.

4. If the misbehaviour persists the child is taken to stand outside the Headteacher’s

office and the Headteacher or senior member of staff is informed.

Consequence Hierarchy

When a pupil breaks a rule: Non verbal warnings should be used whenever possible. AN

exception to this is when a pupil has an Individual Behaviour Plan .

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First incident of misbehaviour Body language/eye contact or verbal reminder to

indicate to the child that they need to modify

their behaviour.

Second incident of misbehaviour Children are moved down the class behaviour chart

to yellow and reminded of the behaviour choices

they need to make in order to return to green.

Third incident of misbehaviour If a child chooses to misbehave again then they are

moved further down the chart to orange. The

consequence of this will be time out. The loss of

time corresponds to the child’s age.

Fourth incident of misbehaviour At this point, the child is moved down to red and

playtime will be lost.

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Severe Misbehaviour

In the case of serious or persistent misbehaviour, a child will lose the right to proceed

through the hierarchy of consequences and will be removed from the classroom

situation and sent straight to the Headteacher. The Headteacher has a range of

strategies and sanctions available to them including the implementation of a behaviour

care plan, referral to outside agencies or a fixed- term or permanent exclusion or a

managed move to a more suitable setting. In such cases the parents will be fully

informed following the behaviour incident as will the governing body. A decision will be

taken when a child's behaviour;

a. is not compatible with the provision for the efficient education of other children

with whom the child in question is being educated

b. involves serious, actual or threatened violence and or malicious accusations against

another pupil or member of staff

c. puts himself/herself, other pupils, members of staff or the wider community at risk

of harm or injury

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Screening, Searching and Confiscation

The school follows Government advice when confiscating items from pupils which is

outlined in their document “Screening, Searching and Confiscation – Advice for Head

teachers, Staff and Governing Bodies – February 2014 (A copy of this document is

available from the school on request or to download from the DfE Website). The

following items are what are termed ‘Prohibited Items’ and their presence on school

premises or if found on an individual pupil will lead to the highest sanctions and

consequences:

Knives Firearms/weapons Illegal drugs Alcohol Fireworks Tobacco and

cigarette papers Pornographic images Stolen items Any article that the member of

staff (or other authorised person) reasonably suspects has been, or is likely to be,

used: i) to commit an offence, ii) to cause personal injury to, or damage to the property

of, any person (including the pupil)

Head teachers and authorised staff can also search for any item banned by the school

rules which has been identified in the rules as an item which may be searched for. The

following are items which are banned by the school:

Mobile phones

Lighters or matches

The school will confiscate any electronic items being used inappropriately on the

premises such as mobile phones. Where items are not collected, the school will dispose

of them at the end of each term. Staff have the power to search pupils with their

consent for any item banned under the school rules. This includes searching bags.

Where items are ‘prohibited’ as outlined above, these will not be returned to pupils and

will be disposed of by the school according to the DfE advice and statutory guidance

‘Screening, Searching and Confiscation – Advice for Head teachers, staff and

Governing Bodies’. Pupils must not bring any of the items listed above on to school

premises. The school will automatically confiscate any of the ‘prohibited’ items and

staff have the power to search pupils without their consent for such items.

Pupil Conduct and Misbehaviour Outside the School Premises

Teachers have a statutory power to discipline pupils for misbehaving outside of the

school premises. Section 89(5) of the Education and Inspections Act 2006 gives Head

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teachers a specific statutory power to regulate pupils’ behaviour in these

circumstances “to such extent as is reasonable.”

Subject to the school’s behaviour policy, the teacher may discipline a pupil for:

any misbehaviour when the child is: taking part in any school-organised or school-

related activity; or travelling to or from school; or wearing the school uniform; or

in some other way identifiable as a pupil at the school.

or misbehaviour at any time, whether or not the conditions above apply, that: could

have repercussions for the orderly running of the school; or poses a threat to

another pupil or member of the public; or could adversely affect the reputation of

the school.

Out of School Behaviour

This school is committed to ensuring our pupils act as positive ambassadors for us.

Taking the above into account, we expect the following:

Good order on all transport (including public transport) to and from school,

educational visits or other placements such as work experience or college courses.

Good behaviour on the way to and from school.

Positive behaviour which does not threaten the health, safety or welfare of our

pupils, staff, volunteers or members of the public.

Reassurance to members of the public about school care and control over pupils in

order to protect the reputation of the school.

Protection for individual staff and pupils from harmful conduct by pupils of the

school when not on the school site. The same behaviour expectations for pupils on the

school premises apply to off-site behaviour.

Sanctions and Disciplinary Action

Off-site Behaviour Sanctions may be given for poor behaviour off the school premises

which undermines any of the above expectations and regardless of whether or not it is

an activity supervised directly by school staff. Sanctions may be in the form of loss of

playtime, fixed term exclusion or in very serious cases, permanent exclusion. In issuing

sanctions, the following will be taken into account:

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The severity of the misbehaviour.

The extent to which the reputation of the school has been affected.

Whether pupils were directly identifiable as being members of the school.

The extent to which the behaviour in question could have repercussions for the

orderly running of the school and/or might pose a threat to another pupil or member of

staff (e.g. bullying another pupil or insulting a member of staff).

The Use of Reasonable Force

In order to maintain the safety and welfare of our pupils, it may sometimes be

necessary to use reasonable force on a pupil, as permitted by law. The Governing Body

have taken account of advice provided by the DfE - Use of reasonable force: advice for

head teachers, staff and governing bodies and the school’s public sector equality duty

set out in section 149 of the Equality Act 2010. Force is generally used for two

different purposes, either to control pupils or to restrain them. Control can mean

either passive contact (standing between two pupils or blocking a pupil’s path) or active

physical contact (leading a pupil by the hand or arm, ushering a pupil away by placing a

hand in the centre of the back). All members of school staff have a legal power to use

reasonable force. This power also applies to people whom the Head teacher has

temporarily put in charge of pupils such as unpaid volunteers or parents accompanying

pupils on a school organised visit. Any use of force by staff will be reasonable, lawful

and proportionate to the circumstances of the incident and the seriousness of the

behaviour (or the consequences it is intended to prevent). Reasonable force will be used

only when immediately necessary and for the minimum time necessary to achieve the

desired result and in order to prevent a pupil from doing or continuing to do any of the

following:

committing a criminal offence

injuring themselves or others

causing damage to property, including their own

engaging in any behaviour prejudicial to good order and discipline at the school or

among any of its pupils, whether that behaviour occurs in a classroom or elsewhere.

Force will never be used as a punishment. Whether it is reasonable to use force and to

what degree, also depends on the age and understanding of the pupil and whether they

have Special Educational Needs or disabilities. Medical advice will always be sought

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about the safest way to hold pupils with specific health needs, special educational

needs and disabilities.

Action as a result of Self-defence or in an Emergency

All staff including teaching assistants, lunchtime supervisors, admin staff and the site

management have the right to defend themselves from attack, providing they do not

use a disproportionate degree of force to do so. Similarly in an emergency, if for

example, a pupil was at immediate risk of injury or at the point of inflicting injury on

someone else, any member of staff is entitled to intervene. A volunteer helping in

school would not be expected to work with a child who is known to need physical

restraint as indicated in their Behaviour Management Plan.

Circumstances in which reasonable force might be used

Circumstances in which reasonable force might be used include the following:

Pupils found fighting will be physically separated.

Pupils who refuse to leave a room when instructed to do so may be physically removed.

Pupils who behave in a way which disrupts a school event or a school trip or visit may

be physically removed from the situation.

Restraint may be used to prevent a pupil leaving a classroom where allowing him or her

to do so would risk their safety or lead to disruptive behaviour. This may also include

leading a pupil by the arm out of a classroom.

Pupils at risk of harming themselves or others through physical outbursts will be

physically restrained.

In order to prevent a pupil from attacking a member of staff or another pupil

To prevent a pupil causing injury or damage by accident, by rough play, or by misuse of

dangerous materials or an object

Staff, where possible, must request the support of another staff member using the

red card alert system.

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Power to Use Reasonable Force when Searching Without Consent

In addition to the general power to use reasonable force, the Head teacher and

authorised staff can use such force as is reasonable given the circumstances to

conduct a search for ‘prohibited items’.

The type of force which will never be acceptable in our school includes:

holding round the neck or any other hold that might restrict breathing;

kicking, slapping or punching;

forcing limbs against joints (e.g. arm locks);

tripping or holding by the hair or ear;

holding face down on the ground.

Staff training

All members of staff will receive training about the use of reasonable force

appropriate to their role to enable them to carry out their responsibilities. This will

include training on any restraint techniques which must not be used because they are

known to present an unacceptable risk when used on children and young people. Some

staff will receive additional training on the appropriate techniques which may be used

to physically restrain pupils. The training will be to an approved nationally acceptable

level and will be regularly refreshed.

Behaviour Management Plans

A pupil with a known challenging behaviour, a medical condition which affects behaviour

patterns or who has special educational needs may be the subject of a Behaviour

Management Plan. This Plan sets out specific ways in which the behaviour is controlled

whilst on school premises and during any off-site visit. It may also include details on

managing the pupil’s behaviour whilst travelling to school on organised home-school

transport. In such circumstances, parents will always be made aware of their child’s

Behaviour Management Plan and will be asked to contribute to the content and control

measures implemented in an attempt to apply consistency of sanctions and rewards

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both in school and at home. Wherever possible and appropriate, the child concerned will

also be involved in creating the Behaviour Management Plan.

Informing Parents when Reasonable Force has been Used

In accordance with current good practice, the school will speak to parents about

serious incidents involving the use of force and will record such serious incidents on

CPOMS. In making a decision about informing parents, the following will be taken into

account:

the pupil’s behaviour and level of risk presented at the time of the incident;

the degree of force used;

the effect on the pupil or member of staff concerned;

the child’s age.

All incidents when ‘physical restraint’ as opposed to ‘physical control’ is used will be

recorded as soon as possible on CPOMS and details passed on to the Head teacher (or

deputy safeguarding lead in the absence of the Head teacher) who will follow up the

incident where necessary. The following must be recorded:

all incidents where unreasonable use of force is used;

any incident where substantial force has been used e.g. physically pushing a pupil out

of a room;

use of restraint;

an incident where a pupil is clearly distressed though clearly not overreacting. The

following criteria will be used when considering the need for recording:

(a) Did the incident cause injury or distress to a member of staff or pupil?

(b) Even though there was no apparent injury or distress, was the incident sufficiently

serious in its own right? Any use of restrictive holds, for example, fall into this

category;

(c) Did the incident justify force? This is particularly relevant where the judgement is

finely balanced;

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(d) Does recording it help to identify and analyse patterns of pupil behaviour?

(d) Does recording it help the pupil develop strategies to avoid such crisis points in the

future and inform relevant staff about these strategies and their roles?

(e) ensuring that staff and pupils affected by the incident have continuing support as

long as necessary in respect of:

physical consequences

emotional stress or loss of confidence

analysis and reflection of the incident

Follow up

In many cases there will be a follow-up meeting of key personnel to discuss the

restraint incident and review the Behaviour Management Plan or other plans for pupils.

It might also be appropriate to review the whole school behaviour policy.

Appendix 2

Staff

Rights and Responsibilities

Rights Responsibilities

To be supported by peers and

managers

To ask for support when needed

To offer support to colleagues and

managers

To be listened to

To share opinions

To listen to others

To give opinions in a constructive

manner.

To be treated courteously by all

others in the school community

To model courteous behaviour

To recognise and acknowledge positive

behaviour in others

To be made fully aware of the school’s To seek information and use all lines

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system/policies/expectations

of communication

To understand the policies and to

support the school in all investigations.

In the event of witnessing any non-

criminal bad behaviour or bullying

witnessed outside the school to report

the matter to the Headteacher

To receive appropriate training to

increase skills in behaviour

management

To support others in developing their

skills in promoting positive behaviour.

To acknowledge areas of own behaviour

management skills that could be

developed

To try/use and to evaluate new

approaches

Pupils

Rights and Responsibilities

Rights Responsibilities

To be treated with respect To behave respectfully towards others

both within school and outside the

school

To be safe To behave in a way that keeps them

selves and others safe both within

school and outside the school

To learn To be willing to learn

To allow others to learn

To attend school regularly

To make mistakes To own mistakes and learn from them

To allow others to make mistakes

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To be listened to To give opinions in a constructive

manner

To listen to others

Parents and Carers

Rights and Responsibilities

Rights Responsibilities

To be treated with respect To behave respectfully towards others

To be kept informed about their child’s

progress

To talk to teachers if they have any

concerns

about their child’s learning and

wellbeing

To talk to their child about what

he/she does in school

To ensure their child attends school

regularly

To be listened to To listen to others

To have access to information on the

school’s procedures for positive

behaviour

To acknowledge/respond to

information and share concerns.

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To have concerns taken seriously To share concerns constructively

Bullying

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All pupils are expected to behave in a responsible manner both to themselves and

others, showing consideration, courtesy and respect for other people at all times.

There are a however a range of behaviours which can cause fear and anxiety.

Behaviour such as this is termed bullying

What is bullying?

Bullying is deliberately hurtful behaviour repeated over a period of time. Ofsted

defines bullying as aggressive or insulting behaviour by an individual or group, often

repeated over a period of time that intentionally hurts or harms. It is difficult for

victims to defend themselves against it.

Bullying can include

Name calling

Malicious gossip

Teasing

Intimidation

Ostracising

Theft

Damaging someone’s property

Violence and assault

Jostling, pinching and kicking

Extortion

Cyberbullying

Symptoms of bullying

Early signs that a child is being bullied could be:

The child becoming withdrawn

A deterioration in the child’s work

Erratic attendance or spurious illness

Persistently arriving late at school

General unhappiness or anxiety

The child wanting to remain with adults

Sudden outbursts not in common with the child’s normal behaviour

Physical symptoms could include headaches, stomach aches, fainting, fits, vomiting or

hyperventilation. Victims can become depressed and this can continue into their adult

lives. They can want to take their own lives.

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Our school offers the following contexts in which teachers and children may model

appropriate behaviour which can prevent bullying.

Strategies to combat bullying

We aim to include the following in our teaching:

Befriending

Circle of friends

Support groups

Mediation by adults

Mediation by peers

Social Skills groups

Befriending

Befriending involves assigning selected pupil volunteers to be with and befriend pupils

who are being bullied or having difficulties because they are new to the school or upset

by an event outside school, e.g. a family bereavement.

The objective is to give the befriended pupil someone to talk to and to help them feel

more positive about themselves.

Circle of Friends

A small number of pupils volunteer to form a circle of friends for a vulnerable pupil to

help improve the pupil’s level of inclusion and acceptance and to increase insight into his

or her feelings and behaviour.

Support Groups

The support group for a bullied pupil includes those involved in the bullying. The aim is

to get the bully to identify with the victim and then to help resolve the problem.

Mediation by adults

Members of staff can help establish ground rules between pupils who are being bullied

and the pupils who are doing the bullying to help them co-exist in school.

Mediation by peers

Peers help embed ground rules between pupils who are being bullied and the pupils who

are doing the bullying to help them co-exist in school.

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Social Skills Groups

Social skills groups will explore why bullying has taken place with bullied pupils and

those involved in the bullying and look at alternative choices and course of action.

Formal Action

If pupils do not respond to preventative strategies to combat bullying, we will take

formal action to stop bullying behaviour. These sanctions are in line with the school’s

acceptable behaviour and discipline policy.

In the case of provable, persistent and violent bullying we will normally seek to

permanently exclude the bully.

Dealing with bullying incidents

In dealing with bullying incidents, we will observe five key points.

We will not ignore bullying.

Staff should not make premature assumptions.

All accounts of the incidents should be listened to fairly.

We will make every effort to adopt a problem-solving approach which

encourages pupils to find solutions rather than simply justify themselves.

We will follow up to check bullying has not resumed.

Records

The school will keep records of all incidents and the school’s response in the CPOMS

system and this will be actioned immediately by the Headteacher..

Advice to bullied pupils

Every child must know that they are protected, that there are adults who can help,

and that it is legitimate to ask for help. We will tell our children not to suffer in

silence. This will be reinforced through general day-to-day teaching,whole school and

class assemblies and specifically PSHE ethos.

During a bullying incident, pupils will be advised to:

Try to stay calm and look as confident as they can

Be firm and clear and look the bully in the eye and tell them to stop

Get away from the situation as quickly as they can

Tell an adult what has happened straight away

After they have been bullied, pupils should:

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Tell a teacher or other adult at school

Tell their family

Take a friend with them if they are scared to tell an adult by themselves

Not blame themselves for what has happened

When they talk to an adult about the bullying, pupils should be clear about:

What has happened to them

How often it has happened

Who was involved

Where it happened

Who saw what happened

What they have done about it already

Working with the Bully

All staff will:

provide clear feedback on the distress that the behaviour has caused,

support the pupil concerned in changing these undesirable behaviours.

Use a problem-solving approach and help the pupil to explore the problem and

suggest solutions,

identify specific good behaviour targets and reinforce them when they are

demonstrated by the pupil. Positive changes in behaviour should be rewarded.

A behaviour plan and where appropriate, behaviour referral, will be made.

In dealing with incidents of bullying, teachers need to take care that they are not

‘bullying the bullied.’ The way in which a difficult incident is handled will of itself,

model for the pupils, the kinds of behaviour that are appropriate in crisis situations.

The role of parents

Bullying is everyone’s problem. All staff, pupils and parents should be aware that

bullying exists and share a commitment to combat it and to make the school a happier

place for everyone.

When, after discussion, we confirm a child has been bullying we will contact the parents

to discuss the issues. We will ask parents to

Make an appointment to see the child’s teacher as soon as possible, and discuss

the problem and d how the school, parents and child all together can stop the

bullying

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Talk to the child regularly about how things are going at school

Give the child lots of praise and encouragement when they are being kind and

considerate to others.

We will follow up the bullying child’s behaviour and further bullying will result in

exclusion.

We will ask parents to contact the school if they suspect their child is being bullied.

Parents of a bullied child should:

Talk to the child calmly about it and reassure the child that telling them about it

was the right thing to do

Make a note of what the child says

Explain that the child should report any further incidents to a teacher or other

member of staff straight away

Make an appointment to see the child’s teacher as soon as possible

Review:

The policy will be reviewed in line with the school’s review cycle. A parent survey will be

conducted bi-annually and data collected regarding the impact of the school’s

acceptable behaviour and discipline policy. However, the governors may review the

policy earlier if the governing body receives recommendations on how the policy might

be improved.